Category Archives: Handy’s Service Center

There can be some confusion as to what order you should perform the parking ritual when parking on a hillside. On flat surfaces we rarely think of engaging the parking brake, but on a hillside most of us are “inclined” xD to do so!

The way to park on a hillside is simple if you remember these three easy steps. First put your foot firmly on the brake and put the car in Park. Once the car is in park, the engage the parking brake. Once you have the parking brake engaged, you can then take your foot off the brake.

The best way to remember the protocol is foot on brake first, foot off brake last!

Come in and see us to have your brakes checked for the upcoming winter, and remember, wet leaves can be as slick as ice! If you live in Essex, Burlington, South Burlington, Colchester, Winooski, Williston, Shelburne and anywhere in the State of Vermont be sure to contact Handy’s Service Center for all your auto repair needs!

It was sad to hear of the recent bankruptcy filing by Sears, that once giant retailer that was the Amazon of its day. The original founder of Sears didn’t make cars but his successor tried getting into the market with the 1909 Sears Motor Buggy.

The buggy was well liked and here is an actual review of one from 1910:

I received your motor car in August last; am much pleased with it and it does all you claim it will do. Last season I ran the car about 1,500 miles without a break or bog, and it crossed the Blue Mountain and also the Broad Mountain out in the coal regions with ease. We have rough and hilly roads here in Pennsylvania and the Sears stood all kinds of tests.

Like so many salvos into new markets, the buggy was not profitable and Sears discontinued it after 1912. Who knows. Will Amazon develop its own car?

If you live in Essex, Burlington, South Burlington, Colchester, Winooski, Williston, Shelburne and anywhere in the State of Vermont be sure to contact Handy’s Service Center for all your auto repair needs!

There are a lot of myths going around about synthetic oil. We hear things like if you change from using conventional oil to synthetic your car will reject it like a bad organ transplant. We also hear that you cannot mix the two together or they will cause your engine to seize up or worse.

The truth is, you can use them interchangably or even together! Though, of course, we don’t recommend that and we recommend you stick to one type of oil per oil change. That being said, if you can afford the slight increase in price for synthetic oil, go for it.

Even if your car is a 2000 Mercury Cougar that has had conventional oil its whole life, you can change over to synthetic oil worry free. It does a better job and lasts longer. Period.

If you haven’t had your oil changed in the last 3,000 miles, come in and see us. If you live in Essex, Burlington, South Burlington, Colchester, Winooski, Williston, Shelburne and anywhere in the State of Vermont be sure to contact Handy’s Service Center for all your auto repair needs!

This is an interesting case we heard about recently. An individual came in with their engine idling high and they were stumped. They had changed their spark plugs, replaced all the filters and had the car checked out by a mechanic. Nothing could be found that seemed wrong. Also, there was no check engine light. What gives?

In the old days you could use a screwdriver and turn down the idle on a car. These days it is all computer controlled and you cannot adjust the idle manually in any way. The check engine light was not on becuase no sensor was sending erroneous information to the car’s computer. So what would cause this?

The answer was interesting. It was bad fuel injectors! There are no sensors in the fuel injectors and when they go they cause issues such as idling inconsistencies. Voila! New injectors and problem solved.

If your car not idling correctly, bring it in and let us have a look! If you live in Essex, Burlington, South Burlington, Colchester, Winooski, Williston, Shelburne and anywhere in the State of Vermont be sure to contact Handy’s Service Center for all your auto repair needs!

Many new cars now have a push button ignition. As long as you have the key fob in hand, you push the button and voila, the car starts! However, sometimes the car will just do nothing when you push that button and you are left wondering why. The car is in park, the battery in your fob is fine, your car battery is full of charge, so what could the problem be?

There is your brake light switch. This is the switch that turns on your lights on the back of your car. It is also the switch that tells the computer in your car that the brake pedal has been depressed. This is needed for the car to start.

Often, when your push button car won’t start, the problem is a broken brake light switch. If all else checks out, give us a call, we will get your vehicle to our shop, determine the cause of your issue, fix it and get you back on the road safely in no time.

If you live in Essex, Burlington, South Burlington, Colchester, Winooski, Williston, Shelburne and anywhere in the State of Vermont be sure to contact Handy’s Service Center for all your auto repair needs!

Those of us who are old enough to remember, remember being told to get our cars out on the highway now and then and that highway miles were good for extending the life of the car. This indeed used to be the case. The reason was that we needed to “blow the carbon out” of the system.

All newer cars are fuel injected and therefore carbon residue does not build up anymore. If you took your engine apart at 50,000 miles it should look as clean as the day you bought it.

So, if you are a city person, or someone who just doesn’t like to take road trips and prefers to fly, don’t worry! You can take as many short trips to the grocery store or dentist as you like and never have to be concerned with getting those highway miles on your vehicle.

If you live in Essex, Burlington, South Burlington, Colchester, Winooski, Williston, Shelburne and anywhere in the State of Vermont be sure to contact Handy’s Service Center for all your auto repair needs!

Lots of us have newer vehicled that were sold to us with things like transmissions that we are told are “sealed for life.” The idea behing this is that the system is kept hermetically closed so that nothing could possibly get into the system to cause abrasions or wear and tear. Also, the fluids used in these transmissions are design to not break down or degrade.

However, some people can get nervous when they hit the 150,000 mile mark or more and want to change their transmission fluid anyway, if for no other reason than peace of mind.

Yes, you CAN open a sealed for life transmission and change the fluid. Clearly, the designers of these vehicles knew that there are cases when you need to get into the transmission. Especially in the case of repairs. But, you really don’t need to! Just change the oil as scheduled if you want to be a true maintenance hawk.

If you live in Essex, Burlington, South Burlington, Colchester, Winooski, Williston, Shelburne and anywhere in the State of Vermont be sure to contact Handy’s Service Center for all your auto repair needs!

This is a question a lot of drivers have. If their tank goes to empty does it really mean that there is NO gas left in the tank? I think we all know the answer to this, but I will confirm. When your car gets to “E” there is actually a gallon or two left in the tank.

This is what the industry refers to as “moron insurance.” However, I like to think of it as insurance to make sure you get to one of our pumps safe and sound!

You don’t hear it talked about much because, clearly, its never a good thing to run your tank out of gas and the manufacturers don’t want you to think that there may be a reserve after the reserve is used!

If you live in Essex, Burlington, South Burlington, Colchester, Winooski, Williston, Shelburne and anywhere in the State of Vermont be sure to contact Handy’s Service Center for all your auto repair needs!

With all the new technology on the market cars still need to have their oil changed regularly. That being said, for cars made in the past ten years or so, you don’t need to change their oil every three thousand miles. In fact, in some instances you can go ten to twelve thousand miles between oil changes if your car has synthetic oil.

Many folks end up changing their oil over frequency recommendations rather than mileage ones. Since conventional oil in newer cars can make it 7,500 miles or six months. people are changing their oil twice a year now more often than every 7,500 miles. Lots of people don’t drive that much.

If you have synthetic oil you can go a full year or ten to twelve thousand miles between oil changes. Whatever type of oil your car has or what year it was made, make sure to change yoru oil regularly based on the manufacturer’s recommendation. When you are ready for an oil change be sure to come in and see us! If you live in Essex, Burlington, South Burlington, Colchester, Winooski, Williston, Shelburne and anywhere in the State of Vermont be sure to contact Handy’s Service Center for all your auto repair needs!

Cars have all tended to become more streamlined since the boxy eighties, but if you look at the current catalog of crossover SUVs, they all look pretty identical to each other. There are some real design reasons for this.

When it comes to larger vehicles, fuel economy requirements require certain aerodynamic shapes which cannot be varied from. Also, when dealing with taller vehicles, there are certain angles that the grill must be and heights that the hood must be to meet safety requirements.

The rest is pretty much all you get for styling, which doesn’t leave much room when you deal with vehicles that are essentially not sedans. Whatever you drive, bring it in regularly for an oil change so that you won’t have to go purchase another lookalike SUV for next year’s family trip! If you live in Essex, Burlington, South Burlington, Colchester, Winooski, Williston, Shelburne and anywhere in the State of Vermont be sure to contact Handy’s Service Center for all your auto repair needs!